Leaf from a Beatus Manuscript: the Sixth Angel Delivers the Four Angels that had been Bound at the River Euphrates; an Altar Appears in the Heavens as the Enthroned Christ Raises His Hand in Blessing
Illustrated Beatus manuscripts bring to life an extraordinary vision of the end of the world, as recorded by Saint John in the Apocalypse (Book of Revelation) and filtered through the lens of Beatus of Liébana, an eighth-century Asturian monk. These manuscripts are unique to medieval Spain and a testament to the pervasive artistry and intellectual milieu of monastic culture there. The leaf shown here comes from a manuscript disassembled in the 1870s.
The Christ figure, offering a blessing, is framed by a celestial arch in the upper left corner of the miniature. Below him, four angels have been freed from their bindings. The Euphrates River, complete with swimming fish, divides these angels from the golden altar and the trumpeting sixth angel.
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Title:Leaf from a Beatus Manuscript: the Sixth Angel Delivers the Four Angels that had been Bound at the River Euphrates; an Altar Appears in the Heavens as the Enthroned Christ Raises His Hand in Blessing
Date:ca. 1180
Culture:Spanish
Medium:Tempera, gold, and ink on parchment
Dimensions:Overall (folio): 17 1/2 x 11 13/16 in. (44.4 x 30 cm) Mat: 22 x 16 in. (55.9 x 40.6 cm)
Classification:Manuscripts and Illuminations
Credit Line:Purchase, The Cloisters Collection, Rogers and Harris Brisbane Dick Funds, and Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1991
Accession Number:1991.232.11
From the Benedictine monastery of San Pedro de Cardeña, Burgos.; Victor Martin Le Roy, Neuilly-sur-Seine ; Jean-Joseph Marquet de Vasselot, Paris ; [ Alain Moatti, Paris (sold 1991)]
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